The Holy Month of Ramadan

Ramadan has been a mixed bag of skittles. (Can you tell I'm hungry?) Some days I appreciate the diligence, devotion and tradition of this holy month. But at the end of the moon cycle, I have to admit, it was pretty frustrating.

For the sake of not having each of you leave with a bad impression of my village's version of Ramadan, I will start with the bad and end with the good.

First, I want to tell you a story. So there is a sweet elderly lady (another Fanta), around the age of 50 but looks 65, who lives 2 huts down from me. She lives with one of Babanding's wives. About two weeks into Ramadan, she got very sick, was coughing, laying down all day and feeling exceptionally weak. She went to the hospital in Dialacoto and came back with some medicine that she was excited to show me. One was an antibiotic of some sort, the other 2 were syrups that seem to merely be for vitamin and iron deficiency.

Now your reaction to this may be similar to what my reaction was- 'Obviously you should NOT be fasting?!!?' But 3 days later, she was feeling better and thus felt inclined to fast.

She continues to take the supplements, but as I explained to her over and over, this is no enough! You shouldn't be fasting! She nods, smiles and politely proclaims 'oh but I am healthy!'

Now you can see how doing 'preventative' health work is going to be difficult/near impossible with this mindset of- 'if I feel healthy at this moment, I cannot doing anything to hurt my body in the long term.'

(Sidenote: This is an advantage of being an outsider who does not speak the language very well. I can say things like 'dont fast!!!', which that may normally offend. But because I am just the 'crazy white lady', they laugh and listen to my advice and Inchallah one person will remember or take it seriously.)

Second story. Naye, Babanding's wife who Fanta lives with, is in her late 20's. She is pretty, kind and energetic. She has 3 children, one of which is a 5 month old adorable baby girl namd Aminata with chubby cheeks and plump legs. Naye goes to the fields at 7 am every morning, carrying Aminata on her back so that she can breastfeed. They return around 2, shower, relax and cook dinner, waiting to break the fast which happens at sunset. 'Mono' or porriage that is sugar water and grounded corn is drunk. Then prayers are said and dinner is eaten around 9:30. She is fasting for Ramadan and has lost at least 15 pounds. Aminata's cheeks are not as chubby as they were 3 weeks ago.

This is Naye

Now this is not always true. I did encounter several pregnant/breastfeeding mothers who were smart enough to not fast. But for those who did fast, I tried, over and over again to explain how their lack of eating means that their baby is also not eating. But like Fanta, they laugh, smile and protest.

Now I dont want to label Naye as a bad mother. She cares a lot for the health of Aminata and even went to Dialacoto during Ramadan for a baby weighing. There, I asked her if Ami was getting smaller. Embarrassed, she quietly said yes.

Now lets not get ahead of ourselves and blame Islam for this. In fact, from personal research, I learned that the religious purpose of Ramadan is to remind people of the poor who do not get to eat and drink water every day. It is supposed to be a month of humbling and thanking Allah. In my opinion, this is a virtuous message, but in this context it has been taken to an extreme and is more of a tradition than the initial purpose as a month of religious understanding. 

This is Tiguida, and that is a tub of peanut butter heaven

I asked everyone why they fast and the only response I received was because it is Ramadan. I constantly pried, trying to get a religious reasoning out of people but was never graced with the answer I wanted to receive. In my village it has become a tradition and a rite of passage. Starting at a young age of 6 or 7, one begins to fast for a few days. Each year they work their way up and provides one with a great sense of pride and maturity. My 16-year old sister, Tiguida, fasted for 18 days. She is typically very shy and down talks her own intelligence and talents. The fact that she fasted for so long was the first time I heard her boast about herself and have a sense of pride in her own abilities. As soon as one marries, one is a 'real woman' and must fast the whole time. 

Ramadan also gives younger children their first opportunity to make meals, pound corn and feed people. I have to include myself in this 'younger children' category as it was the first time I too was allowed to do these things. Where before people would object to me pounding or cutting onions for longer than a few minutes, with the coming of exhaustion and hunger went people's manners. I was finally given the opportunity to prove myself (and given a damn good work out) as I pounded corn or peanuts for 20 minutes without hearing objections.

I 'fasted' for two day. (Still drank water and did not spit out my 'mouth water' like they do) but I did go from sunrise to sunset without eating and by the end of the day I felt a great sense of camaraderie, insight and light headedness. I bonded with my fellow peers as we sat around at 6 pm, dazedly watching food being prepared and longingly staring at the setting sun.

There is one memory of this bonding that sticks out to me the most. After not eating for 11 hours, I was beginning to feel slightly drunk and giddy from exhaustion and hunger. As I was lounging, staring at nothing, I watched one of my sisters trip, slowly stop herself from falling and catch my eye as I was staring, mouth half open. We giggled and without saying any words we knew exactly how each other were feeling. If I tried to function, I would trip too.

The end of Ramadan is a big party. Cows are killed, hair is braided, new flip flops are bought and clothing is made. It is a big party, commemorating the end of a month of fasting, but also a month that mixes up their daily routines. I think on some level most people like Ramadan. It is something to talk about, a reason to switch up one's daily life and an excuse to eat expensive food and once the new moon shines it is over and there have something to complain about for a full 11 months until the suffering begins again. 

P.S. I am sure you have all been quite concerned about if I got to finish all 7 Harry Potter books during Ramadan. Yes, I did (and a few other books) and they were just as amazing as ever. I am now starting the movies to continue the magic. Deb, I wish you and better snacks were with me. ;-)